UFC Fight Night 77 Preview
The focus for the UFC right now and for many is on the new breed of superstar set to face-off at UFC 193 but before that, two legends face-off at UFC Fight Night 77.
Long before Ronda Rousey took over the fight game, Vitor Belfort and Dan Henderson were making their mark on a sport that not many knew about.
It was a time when the UFC was just beginning and the championships were determined by tournaments.
Belfort won one of those tournaments at only 19-years old and from there he moved on to a great career.
He fought in and out of the UFC for years making stops in Pride and Strikeforce all building to what has been a legendary MMA life.
Henderson has had a very similar career in MMA as he has been fighting for years and was one of the building blocks of Pride.
He has accomplished almost everything one can in the sport short of winning a UFC title and is sure, like Belfort, to enter the UFC Hall of Fame.
Both legends will face-off at UFC Fight Night 77 in an epic battle of two of the greatest fighters to ever sign with the UFC.
The best part about this fight is that it will not be the first time that these two fighters have fought each other.
This will be the end of a trilogy of fights that stretches back to when both fighters were a part of Pride.
In that original fight in 2006 Dan Henderson took the win with a unanimous decision but the second fight saw Belfort get his revenge.
The revenge was a different kind as well with both fighters moving up the rankings in the middleweight division their 2013 fight was a chance for either fighter to get closer to the title.
After a brief feeling out period Belfort took control in the first round with his quick hands and a massive head kick.
Henderson was done in the first round of the fight and Belfort took that knockout of the night performance to a title fight against Chris Weidman.
What followed was a long period of suspensions and failed drug tests before Belfort finally got a shot at the middleweight title.
After that he finally got another shot at another UFC title but Weidman was more than up to the task knocking Belfort out in the first round to retain the title.
After the loss to Belfort, Henderson has been involved in some great fights with mixed results that has left many to wonder how much longer he has in the sport.
Knockout wins against Mauricio Rua and Tim Boetsch book-ended losses to Gegard Mousasi and Daniel Cormier.
He has not been consistent and the likelihood of a title challenge is not very good as he continues to be inconsistent and doesn’t have much of a career left.
Belfort ranks #4 in the middleweight division and is looking for another shot while Henderson is ranked #12 and seems to be just hoping for a good end to a great career.
At the end of the fight there is no title challenge waiting for either of these fighters but for Belfort a title challenge could get a lot closer.
Henderson needs a lot more wins to get to ta title shot but his career may not have that many fights left while Belfort is only a few good wins away from another shot at Weidman.
If Belfort wins he could move up in the rankings and only be a win away while Henderson needs more but a win could still help him out.
After all this the third time these fighters have faced off and this counts a rubber match with both fighters already taking a win from each other.
They enter the octagon looking to take the second and deciding win and will try to do it in much the same way.
Both have a base on the ground as Henderson is a wrestler and Belfort is a BJJ champion but they have not made their MMA careers that way.
Belfort still has some of the fastest hands in the UFC and although he doesn’t match the one-shot power of Henderson he does put together so many hard punches that you will drop eventually.
Henderson has that one shot power though and if he lands that overhand right hand there aren’t many people who can stay up.
Both will go at it again as they look for the decisive win in this trilogy as the legends face-off at UFC Fight Night 77.
The Sport Addiction 